Eve Stark Meets the Ninja Turtles
by Jack-chan88
Summary: Eve Stark is part of the Avengers Universe, as Tony's daughter, but when her brother needs help, she leaves LA to go to NY with her 3 friends and meets the TMNT. These girls will find fun and romance. Raphael/OC, Mikey/OC, Leo/OC, Donnie/OC The Avengers are just side characters that I mention for now. TMNT Story. Enjoy!
1. Eve Stark Finds Brother

_I've recently been watching the 2003 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and for some reason keep making up stories in my head of them with an OC from the Avengers universe. I was going to put this under a crossover, but it doesn't focus on the Avengers, only on the OC's and the Ninja Turtles, so I'll keep it in just the category for now. I started writing it all down and figured that I mind as well share it. If you like it, then great! If not, then sorry. I've also been typing this for 8 hours straight like some kind of lunatic. I don't even know what I want to do with it, but you're welcome to take part in my craziness. I don't know if I want to do anything with the Avengers yet, I just like the fact that they're sort of in my story._

_Disclaimer: Don't own Avengers, __Don't own TMNT_

The room was stale with smoke and strangers clogging up the furniture as the current residents puffed their futures away. Some form of dubstep was pulsing through speakers, vibrating the walls with the techno music and a few souls were attempting to dance, but instead they were slowly flailing around.

Eve hated these places, but continued stepping around the litter of drug induced bodies, looking for one specific idiotic, useless, boy, her older brother. He disappeared again and she took it upon herself to find him this time.

She continued through the smog, glancing at the blank faces but not really caring about them as she stepped over their comatose states.

"Who's the chick?"

"Is she a cop?"

"Let her try the stuff."

She heard the voices muttering, but ignored them and focused on the tuff of honey bronze hair that lay on the owner who was leaning against the wall with drool oozing out of his mouth.

"Damnit Harrison." She swore under her breath and knelt down next to him, placing her fingers on his sweaty forehead.

"Harrison. Harrison! Can you hear me?" She called out in desperation to him and waited until he registered her voice. Finally, he opened his eyes and she sighed in relief as his eyes finally dilated. She wasn't a doctor, but she knew he was going to be fine. They just needed to flush his system again and he'd be almost as good as new.

Lugging him out of the shady apartment proved to be difficult, but once she dragged his body into the elevator, she ignored the dark stains on the floor and slid her phone out of her jean pocket to call her father.

It rang once and then he answered in annoyance. "Where did you find him this time?"

"Westchester. Same town, different building. We'll be home soon." She responded and the exhaustion crept through her voice as she stared down at what her brother had become.

"Alright." He sighed in exasperation. "Bruce and I are ready to flush him." He stated and then cut the call.

The elevator doors creaked open, finally arriving on the ground floor and her driver frowned at the state of Harrison.

"I got it from here, Eve," He said with a nod and she walked outside, enjoying the crisp air that rushed at her as Happy followed behind her, carrying the deadweight of her brother and chucking him into the limo.

"Let's go. This town will jump on us the minute they see this car." He grunted and slid into the driver's seat as she buckled up next to him on the passenger side.

"He's getting worse, Happy. What are we going to do?" She asked and leaned her head against the window, watching the sketchy neighborhood pass them by as they drove towards Los Angeles.

"He swallowed more than he could bite. Maybe it's time that we get him professional help." He admitted and they drove the rest of the way to the mansion in bitter silence.

Once they drove through the gates and up the winding driveway, Happy carried Harrison into the house and into the infirmary room so her father and Bruce could begin the process.

Eve shuffled her feet in the house, up the spiral staircase, and through the long hallway until she arrived in her room. After changing into some sweatpants and a red tank, she curled up in bed, letting the blankets swallow her up.

"Jarvis, what time is it?" She called out to the empty room and the soft British voice of their A.I. responded.

"It's 4 in the morning, miss. I suggest you get some sleep."

"Thanks Jarvis. I plan on it." She muttered and with one last yawn, she let sleep overtake her senses.

Their life looked glamorous from the outside perspective with the beautiful mansion, expensive cars, a sleek limo, designer labels, technology that surpasses any in existence, and an unimaginable amount of money. Sure, they seemed perfect and most envied them, but outsiders failed to realize who they truly were. Her father, Tony Stark, also known as Iron Man, Bruce, Pepper, her brother, and her all lived in this house while the other Avengers took up residence in New York and Washington D.C. The attack of New York happened 3 years ago and while the country was finally forgetting about the disaster it had brought, her family and friends would never forget what Loki had done to them. Thor returned to Asgard to take his rightful throne, only visiting once a year for a couple months until he had to resume to his responsibilities. Nat and Clint stuck with S.H.I.E.L.D to continue with missions so when they weren't traveling, they resided in D.C. with Steve who was also going on missions and saving the world while taking care of Bucky after he saved him from HYDRA. Her father had the STARK building fixed and upgraded, but moved Pepper and her to California. He still had panic attacks and the only way to keep them under control was to get away from anything that reminded him of New York and Loki. Bruce didn't want to go back into hiding after befriending her dad, so he joined them and worked on experiments here.

Harrison used to be an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D, but when HYDRA infected the organization, he helped the Avengers take the disease out and then quit once they won. He didn't know what to do with his life though and tried to hang out with the young crowd, but that got him into things out of his control, like drugs. So for the past year, Eve and her father had been taking turns hunting him down and dragging his doped ass back home. They'd flush his system and rehabilitate him, but he was addicted to this strong drug on the black market, Liquid Gold, and after a few weeks would vanish off the map. Sure, they had tried to put a tracker in him, but he was a Stark after all and even if he was dumb as hell when it came to these drugs, he knew how to get the trackers out. Anywhere they placed it, whether they implanted it in his skin or on his clothes, he would just tear it out. He was an experienced S.H.I.E.L.D agent and had the Stark brains so they would just have to outwit him and it became a sick game among their family. Whose turn was it to find drugged up Harrison?

Eve wasn't an agent and even if she wanted to train to be one, her father forbade any thought of it. She was the baby of the family, the princess, as her father liked to call her. While her brother went the spy route, she stayed home with her dad and helped with the weapons company. She graduated with her two Master degrees in engineering electricity from MIT at the age of 18, a year younger than her father when he earned his two degrees.

-_That's the first chapter and I promise I'll go back and reread it and edit it tomorrow. After I sleep. Adios!_


	2. Dad's Decision, Meet Girls

Eve stretched her limbs and opened her coffee colored eyes to the darkness surrounding her in the room, the blankets tangled over her limbs.

"Morning, Jarvis." She greeted with a yawn and sat up with a groan. "You can open the shutters." She commanded and at his robotic greeting, the metal lifted from the window and the sunlight began to stream inside.

Her room wasn't anything special, a few portraits on the walls of her with her friends, Clint sticking his tongue out at her as Nat was in mid eye roll, Bruce leaning against her shoulder as Tony rested his arms on her head, Steve hugging her with a wide smile as Bucky stood off to the side a bit with a small smile directed at the two, and several others of just her, Pep, and dad.

"Jarvis, what time is it?" She asked while throwing her long chestnut hair into a sloppy bun.

"It's is just now approaching noon."

She wandered down the stairs and into the kitchen, grabbing an apple from the marble counter, and then fell into the couch next to her father who was clicking through the channels in boredom.

"Morning sleepy head." He greeted and Bruce gave her a tired wave from the other side of semi-circle couch and then he rolled his head back and closed his eyes.

"Did you two get any sleep last night?" She asked while munching on her breakfast/lunch.

"Nope. Harrison is quite the handful this time. Nothing we can't handle though." Her dad murmured, but the strain crept out in his voice and Eve frowned at their predicament.

"Happy said something last night that I think we should consider." She started and her dad muted the TV and reached for the cold pizza on the table in front of him.

"Instead of going through this routine every few months, why don't we admit him into a professional rehab?" She offered and even though she hated the thought of sending Harrison away like he was a blemish on the family, she knew that he was slowly wearing on their emotional stability.

Her father shoved the rest of the piece of mushroom pizza into his mouth, stating last night that it constituted as his vegetable intake for the week, and furrowed his eyebrows at Bruce who was sitting up straighter now at the new idea.

"We've already discussed this before though. We can't send a Stark to rehab where they won't even treat him right." Tony said, but his voice didn't hold the strict conviction that it did when he said it 2 years ago when this first started.

"Maybe we should consider it, Tony. Harrison is beginning to rub at the other guy the wrong way now." Bruce commented.

"Where would we send him though? He needs to be safe." Tony asked, toying with the idea more now in his head.

"Jarvis, where's the best rehabilitation center located?" Eve asked and Tony used the hologram system to enlarge the building that Jarvis put up for them in front of them.

"It's in New York." Tony whispered, but before he could let his emotions overwhelm him, he felt his daughter's hand on his shoulder and relaxed under the pressure.

"He needs to go." Bruce stated, standing next to them now and they all stared at the large hologram of their answer.

"I'll go too." Eve whispered and Tony whipped around, but before he could tell her 'no', she twisted the red twine bracelet that Harrison got her after Hydra was defeated around and turned to the infirmary door. "He can't go there alone, dad. He needs family close, a support system just in case. I'll move there and keep an eye on everything." She said and then her father latched onto her in a bear hug, his arms gripping around her.

"You'll protect him. You can move into the tower." He said after a few minutes and released her.

"I know you don't want me to go, but we need to do this, for Harrison."

"For Harrison." Bruce chimed in and gave her a hopeful smile.

"You're bringing Happy with you though. That city is a scary place, especially since no one is protecting it now. Heard there's some freaky gang there now." Tony demanded and pulled up his hologram computer. "I'm calling for my jet now and I'll have Rhodes escort you there and Pepper will want to help you move back in. She can also show you the new alterations since she's been updating the tower. It's her baby now, 100%." Tony continued, but was speaking more out loud in general than to any one person so Eve returned upstairs to begin packing.

Eve packed everything she owned, from the clothes in her closet, the pictures on the wall, books on her shelves, to her electronic inventions.

Evangelina Stark was short by only reaching 5 feet and her long brown hair reached to the middle of her back. Even though her working out only consisted of a morning jog here and there while her diet was mainly pizza and fast food with whatever her father was eating, she was a tiny girl with a fast metabolism. Her light brown eyes held curiosity for the things surrounding her and a gentleness that radiated off of her.

She hated leaving LA, her friends and family, and the life she had built here, but her brother needed help and she was going to make sure he got it. So after packing, she called Pepper, who may not be biologically related to her, but was her mom in every other way besides DNA. Pepper wasn't thrilled at the idea, but reassured her that she was going with her and would work from New York so she could help.

Then came her phone call to her best friend.

Kelsey was an EX S.H.I.E.L.D agent, who worked with her brother on missions. Eve met her when she visited D.C. Headquarters and instead of hanging out with her brother she would meet up with Kels. Now, 5 years later, they lived completely different lives, but were still as close as family. Kelsey was 5 foot 2, but for a small girl she had a muscular build and was tone and tan. Her short blonde hair reached her shoulders in small ringlets while her dark blue eyes pierced those around her.

"Hey Kels, I need to tell you something, but let me add the others too." Eve greeted and she clicked on Katerina and Ember's names to connect them to the conference call.

Four very different women, but Eve was the glue that brought them together.

Katerina had gone to MIT with Eve and even though she was a genius, she wasn't a Stark and it still took her a few more years to get on the same academic track. They met in their first semester and after being roommates for years, they were basically sisters. Katerina had light blue eyes and short straight brown hair that reached her shoulders. She was a very pale girl since she spent all of her time on her computer creating programs or researching. She was about 5 foot 1 and small in nature.

Ember had been living on the streets when Eve had started at MIT. Eve hadn't known about her living arrangements when they first became friends, but as soon as she found out, she had forced Tony to adopt the young girl and she became a legal sister. Ember had soft copper colored hair that framed her face in soft curls down her back and she had bright green eyes. She was 5 foot 3 and was a small girl, but kept herself strong by working out every day to not only protect her own body, but to keep those around her safe.

"I found Harrison." Eve stated and waited for the girl's outburst to quiet down before she continued.

"He was in Westchester again." She answered Em's question of where her dumb older brother had been hiding this time.

"That dump?!" Kelsey exclaimed.

"Different dump. About a block away from the building he was in last time." Eve answered.

"I'm almost done with a new tracking system; one that he can't get rid." Katerina said with hope lacing her words.

"That won't be necessary, Kat. We're getting him professional help this time. Maybe they can help him." Eve interjected with a heavy heart.

"In LA?" Em asked.

"No, New York is where the best rehab facility is located."

"New York? But your dad can't go to New York. Not after the Invasion." Kelsey said in shock.

"He's not coming. Pepper is going to help me get settled, but it will just be Happy and I at the tower." Eve answered as she gazed around her room for anything else that she needed to pack.

"This is bullshit. What the hell does Harrison think he's doing?" Kelsey bit back her shout and stated in a calm, but bitter tone.

Eve bit her lip as she realized she couldn't quite remember the last time she smiled since Harrison started this emotional rollercoaster.

"Eve! I just talked with Pepper and she said that Happy can come back to LA with her after you're settled. You need your friends." Ember exclaimed and Eve felt a sliver of hope returning to her at the prospect.

"I'm sorry Eve. You don't deserve this burden, none of you do, but Harrison will be in good hands under constant watch. Since Ems going with you, do you mind if I tag along? D.C. is a boring place without SHIELD bugging in my life." Kelsey joked and Eve smiled at her friend's warm heart.

"I would love that Kels. The tower will be empty besides us, so the more, the merrier." Eve responded as she stacked her duffle bags by the door.

"Mind if one more joins the party?" Katerina asked timidly and Eve chuckled. They had been roommates for years, knew each other's little ticks, and yet the girl still felt awkward asking things.

"Of course Kat. It wouldn't be the same without you." Eve answered.

"A whole tower to ourselves. Whatever shall we do?" Em teased.

"Nerdy parties?" Kat piped in and Eve shook her head at their antics.

"I'm almost at your house with Pep and then we can load up the plane. See you soon Eve, and the rest of you within the week." Ember stated, her playful voice gone and back to business and the girls said their respective farewells and hung up.


	3. Getting on the Plane

_Here's chapter 3 and I want you guys to meet the four girls before I throw in the turtles. When I read fanfics, I always hate when you have to quickly get to know the new characters, so I'm going to have a few more chapters of just the OC's. _

In just a few hours they had Eve's brother, Harrison, loaded in the jet, strapped down, and sleeping soundly as Bruce gave him a lower dose of the Liquid Gold drug.

If they cut him off cold turkey, his body would go into shock, so Bruce made the thick drug with his own chemicals in the lab and administered the small dose. Even though the doctors had experience with Liquid Drug, Bruce wrote down each dose that was to be administered and the time they were to do it. They hated handing the 29 year old over to strangers, but after Tony ran background checks on every employee in the Rehab, they had to admit that the change may save the sad Stark.

Happy and Ember loaded all of Eve's bags and a couple that they had packed for Harrison. Tony wasn't overly enthused about the future bodyguard switch, because Happy was brute force whereas Ember was more strategic safety, but he knew that his adopted daughter was good for Eve. So he bid his wife goodbye and then watched Rhodes begin flight protocol after it was fueled.

Since Em lived in the room adjacent to Eve, the two girls ran upstairs and packed up her belongings into a few suitcases so they could get up in the air. The longer they stayed on the ground, the worse it would be for Harrison.

"It isn't right. He's a genius and yet he's as dumb as the average Joe. Why the hell would he even try drugs?" Em muttered while throwing clothes into a suitcase and Eve hated that her fun loving friend was distraught.

"I know, sweetheart. He's helped save countless people and this is the awful thanks he gets." Eve agreed in remorse and they quickly finished with hope that this change would be for the better.

Once they dragged the bags downstairs, Happy ushered them towards Tony as he finished loading up the jet and taking a seat inside.

"I don't like this. Let's just go back inside so I can order a pizza. It can be a simple cheese this time." Tony attempted to persuade his daughter to stay, but Eve threw her arms around him instead. She hated their predicament, but if they didn't follow through, Harrison may never heal from this vicious cycle.

"Don't worry, dad. We're Starks. Nothing can stop us." Eve whispered in his ear and felt him squeeze her before she pulled away from him. She knew that if she truly needed him to, that he would get on that plane with her and to hell with his anxiety. But now wasn't the time for him to face that fear and she needed her strong arrogant father right now. In the safety of LA, he could continue that Iron, narcissistic image that he created when she was a baby.

"Listen to me Evangelina Stark, you and Harrison are my legacy, so keep your wits." He ordered sternly and she nodded with a smile. "Ember!" He shouted at the girl standing a couple of feet away from the farewell scene and she rushed forward.

"Yes, Mr. Stark!" She responded.

"I am leaving my daughter in your fully capable hands. Don't screw it up." His gruff voice demanded and then he chuckled at her stern posture. He strutted up to her and gave her a quick hug.

"Em, take care of this spitfire and yourself. I expect you both to be in the shape I see you now." His voice was calm and he smiled at the girl that he had watched grow up with his daughter. Ember wasn't just another bodyguard; she was part of their family. She was another daughter for him, a sister for Eve, and a protector of all of them.

Ember didn't start out as a bodyguard for them, but as soon as they took her in, she took an interest in training martial arts and even though they never asked her to, she vowed that she would protect Eve no matter what. Her amusing personality contrasted with her fighting agility perfectly as if she had always been a Stark.

Ember grinned at Tony and flicked his forhead.

"Don't worry yourself, old man. I'll eat Eve's pizza and make her eat rabbit food or something. I got this whole protecting thing down!" She joked and Eve rolled her eyes as Tony stuck his tongue out at her.

"Woah now. That's just torture!" He exclaimed in mock fear.

"We're ready to go!" Rhodes called out from the jet and Tony engulfed the girls in a hug once more.

"Are you sure you'll be alright?" He asked.

"Kat and Kelsey are moving in with us too. So we won't be all by our lonesome selves. Steve, Clint, and Nat are close by if need be and we have Jarvis to check up on us. I'll give Phil a call too so he knows about the move. Don't worry so much. You'll get wrinkles." Eve joked and grinned as he scoffed at her.

"I don't get wrinkles." He stated and leaned down to kiss her forehead.

"I love you dad. This isn't forever." Eve said to console him, but was also trying to get a grip on herself. Sure she had been away from him before when she went to school at MIT, but he was an hour drive away, living in New York while she went to school. She had never been an entire country away from him, coast to coast.

"Stay safe. And take a shower when you get there." He joked as Pepper rushed towards him for one last hug and Eve laughed at his tease.

"Very funny. I scrubbed that drug joint off of me before packing. Burn my sheets though." She added and entered the jet, Em following behind her.

"Alright, Pepper and the girls are in. Let's go." Happy called out to Rhodes and Eve welcomed Pepper's warm embrace as the woman sat down between the girls.

"Don't worry, Hare. We're gonna get you help." Eve directed at the small cubicle on the other side of the jet where they placed the sleeping man and she closed her eyes as the plane began to ascend.


	4. Stark Tower

_Here's another chapter. I hope you guys like it. I'm writing for pure enjoyment right now. :)_

"Homier than I remember." Eve commented and tossed down two duffle bags onto the floor as Ember threw hers down and ran to the plush couch to jump on it.

"This place is so cool!" Em shouted, jumping up and down as Pepper skirted around, turning the electricity on full power.

"Is this whole tower really empty?" Eve asked in dismay as she watched Pepper pull up the hologram of the tower.

"Yup. Each floor is themed too since before HYDRA attacked, the Avengers were going to live here. Do you want your old floor or one of the others? Ember! Same question." Pepper called out and the hyper girl stopped bouncing to come closer to the hologram. "Do you want your own floor or are you girls sharing? What about Kelsey and Katerina? Do you want to call them up to ask?" Pepper asked and turned to them, her hand hovering over the hologram, so she could decide which floors to activate.

"For now I think we'll share." Eve said with a hesitant look at her friend to see if she agreed and Em grinned in response. "Yeah, we'll share for the first couple of days, so activate these floors." Eve pointed at her old floor, the entertainment one, the gym floor, the guest one, Em's floor, the lab, and two random ones that had been remodeled as living quarters in case they had more than one guest.

Pepper activated them as the basement where the cars were kept and the main floor, the one they were currently on.

"Why does that one have my name on it?" Ember asked curiously, leaning her head towards the blue outline and poked it as it enlarged at her touch. Pepper's phone rang out loudly at that moment and Ember flinched back as if she was in trouble and then laughed at her reaction as the older woman walked away to answer it.

"After I graduated from MIT, we were going to move here and since we were remodeling it after the Invasion anyways, and I requested you have your own living quarters. Since you had been sharing my apartment with me during college, you deserved your own space." Eve explained and then sighed as she closed the floor on the hologram so it transformed back to the outline of the whole tower. "But then HYDRA attacked and everyone was exhausted. Not only did we all go our separate ways, but dad, well he couldn't stay here. We ended up in LA and just never got around to telling you. Let's name these for Kels and Kat." Eve finished saying and clicked on two of the guest floors right next to her and Em's and named them for Jarvis. "There, now they can decorate it however they like when they get here. We'll just give our guy a call and have a session for all our floors. It will be fun." She said, trying to get into the same upbeat mood that Em was in. She needed to shake off her worries for her brother and just enjoy being in the city.

"You're telling me that we're going to decorate these for ourselves? Professionally?" Em asked as the blue light from the hologram glowed in her eyes and she turned towards Eve with a fresh sense of hope.

Eve nodded slowly as she gazed on the little shield and hammer on two of the levels, where Steve and Thor would have been living if things had been different. She could imagine waking up and seeing Steve in the gym with Nat as Clint hid in the vents, Bruce and dad would have been doing drunk science in the lab, and ever cupboard would be stocked full of poptarts for Thor. Kelsey and Harrison would still be working for Phil, while Kat invented neat gadgets to help them for missions. Eve could see the tower bustling with silly arguments about where the last of the tea was placed, who failed to buy more milk after Tony chugged it, or even random movie nights that they could have partook in.

They would have been a ticking time bomb, waiting for the next enemy to attack, but they still would have been a family.

"Can we afford to do that?" Em asked and then reached up to smack her forehead lightly. "Am I seriously asking a Stark about money?"

Eve laughed and opened her mouth to respond, but she saw Pepper turn and begin approaching them.

"That was Rhodes. He just got Harrison checked in and emailed you the hours for visitation, however it will take 2 months before they allow anyone to see him according to their protocol." Pepper said, her heels clacking against the floor.

"Sounds like our plan may be starting to come together. Only time will tell." Eve trailed off just as Ember spun around in a circle and the other two women raised their brows at her eccentric behavior.

"It can only go uphill now! Let's celebrate with Pizza!" Ember shouted and pulled out her phone to place in an order online.

"She's lived with us for how many years and I am still confused by her behavior. Have we ever thought of putting her through a psych evaluation test?" Pepper joked with a laugh.

"She is a strange one, isn't she?" Eve commented and turned towards Pepper. "We're going to call the decorator tomorrow and have him redo our floors." Pepper put her arm over Eve's shoulder and they gazed around the room in remembrance.

"Don't worry about calling Marvin, I'll get all of that covered." Pepper finally said and walked towards the window to dial their decorator.

"Halleluiah! I ordered 3 pizzas." Em called out from the couch. "Are they calling back already?" Em questioned as her phone vibrated in her hand just as Eve's dinged from her pocket.

"It's Kelsey in a group message. She'll be here with her stuff tomorrow at noon." Eve read out loud and Em bounced up from the couch.

"This is so exciting! We had freedom back in LA, but whenever it's been the 4 of us, we've had to go our separate ways after a while. We've never been together longer than a week. It's so exciting. And the boys! We can go meet new boys!" Ember whispered as if it was a secret and Eve laughed at the wide grin that had taken up permanent residence on Em.

"I texted Kat and she said she's almost here!" Ember said with wide eyes and ran towards the elevator.

"Em! What are you doing?" Eve hollered at her and instead of a response, Em danced with a beckoning finger towards her. "Pepper, any time after 2 tomorrow is fine for Marvin." Eve called out and Pepper nodded in response and then turned back to her phone conversation as Eve followed her odd sister.

"She said she's here. Let's go!" Ember explained and Eve's confused frown turned into an excited smile.

The elevator couldn't seem to descend fast enough for them, but they finally found themselves in the basement.

"Jarvis can you open the garage?" Eve called out and the dark basement glowed with the new light as the large mechanical door vanished into the wall.

"Thanks Jar!" Em squealed out and jumped up on the balls of her feet as Kat drove in and parked. Eve was just as excited as her sister, but it seemed that their lack of sleep from the plane ride only managed to give Em a boost of adrenaline.

Kat opened her door and stepped out, only to be smothered in a tight hug from Em and after the initial shock of her invasion of space, she hugged her back as Eve stepped forward to join the embrace.

"It's so good to be with you guys ,especially after that long drive. How's your brother doing?" Kat asked but instead of answering, Eve pulled her in for another hug.

With the lights on now, Eve stepped back and looked over her friend to see if there were any substantial differences. Nope, Katerina was still as white as milk with the only difference being that her short brown hair was in a bit of a frizzy mess from packing all of her things on such short notice.

"You didn't have any problems moving?" Eve asked with concern, hating that these girls dropped everything just to come do nothing with her in New York.

Kat waved her hand dismissively though with a small chuckle. "Not at all. My lease is up in 2 months in that awful apartment. I've been looking for a new place for a few weeks now, so this offer was just in the nick of time. Plus my roommate was horrendous. Did I ever tell you that you're my favorite roomie?" Kat said with a sheepish smile.

"Hey! I lived with you guys too!" Em cut in and threw her arm around Kat with a speculative look.

"Did you really?" Kat teased and Eve laughed as Em playfully smacked their arms.

"So funny. But, I have pizza coming. Let's get this car unpacked." Em ordered and reached in the door to push the button and a second later the trunk popped up.

"Don't you always have pizza coming? Do you eat anything else?" Kat groaned out and reached inside for her purse before following the girls to the trunk.

"Her main food groups consist of pizza, Chinese, Italian, and more pizza." Eve answered and Em turned around to stick her tongue out at her.

"I earn it! That's why I work out so much! The moment I stop going to the gym is when we can cut pizza out of our diets." Em defended and reached in the car for some bags.

"Even though you work out, how do you stay so thin? I have to eat healthy or else I'd be the new Hulk." Kat remarked while trying to lift her suitcase out of the trunk.

"That's cause you spend all of your time on your technobabble stuff. Look at Eve, she does both! Computer hacker and she eats everything I do. Eve, do you secretly work out without telling us?" Em asked, leaning forward to peer into her eyes.

"I don't understand it either. Hey! I work out!" Eve defended and grabbed the bags from Em's hands.

"A jog once a day or week doesn't count." Kat huffed out and stepped out of the way so Em could pull the suitcase out.

"Geez, what do you have packed in here? A library?" Em asked as the bag hit the floor, almost tipping over from its weight.

"Those are expensive books so I couldn't leave them behind." Kat stated sheepishly.

"Let's just put these on your level and then we can worry about grabbing what you'll need for tonight." Eve said while lifting up the bags that she had set on the floor when the other two were trying to get the suitcase out.

"Wait, floor? I have a floor? A whole level?" Kat asked in disbelief as she reached in to grab the big box in the backseat.

"We each have one. But we're going to sleep on my floor until we get the decorator here tomorrow. You can choose a theme and everything." Eve said as she stepped inside the elevator.

"You have got to be kidding me." Kat said in shock.

"If your jaw drops anymore, we'll have to sew it back on!" Em teased, getting on the elevator last with the cement bag dragging behind her.

"Jarvis, shut the garage door and bring us to Kat's floor." Eve called out and Kat grinned.

"I've always heard of Jarvis from your phone, but is he really in the whole building?" Kat whispered incredulously and the British computer responded.

"Good afternoon Miss Katerina Adams. Welcome to Stark Tower."

Kat froze and almost dropped the box in her hand.

"Are you gonna be ok?" Eve asked worriedly, but she needn't worry because the young girl laughed and gazed around the elevator in dismay.

"Jarvis, you are amazing. I can't wait to figure out how you work." Kat breathed out in amazement and Em chuckled.

"Why thank you Miss Katerina. As you are now a permanent resident of the Tower, I welcome your curiosity." He responded and the doors opened to an empty lot. The walls were covered in plain white paint and the hard wood floor held no furniture on it.

"This is mine?" Kat asked as she wandered in and set the box down to the side of the entranceway.

"Yeah, there is a small kitchenette right there, the bedroom is down that hall along with a grand bathroom. These were made with the intention of being mini apartments." Eve answered as her and Ember set Kat's belongings next to the box.

"This is stellar." Kat commented and turned around to grin at the two girls.

"Let's go get the rest of your bags and then we can wait on the ground floor for the majestic pizza man. They said it would be a 30 minute wait so now we only have to wait 15 minutes." Em said and ran back into the elevator. "Come on Jarvis, I know you can hear us." Em called out and the other two girls shuffled back in just as the doors began to close.

"Of course Miss Ember Waddell." Jarvis responded and the girls finished carrying up the rest of the bags and then only had to wait for a couple of minutes for the young delivery guy to hand them the pizzas.

Their first night at the tower was full of laughs, stories, food, and the promise of good things to come.


	5. The Four Musketeers Together Again

_Another chapter. Sure I've posted on here before, but this is exciting having people read my words. This is a TMNT, but they will be introduced in the chapter after this one. I already have them all typed up. :) I hope you readers enjoy this story. _

_There is no right or wrong in my story, just my own little fun world._

* * *

After Kelsey arrived in her looming pickup truck the next day, the girls brought her stuff up to her empty loft and hung out on HQ, as Em liked to call their main floor.

"Last one to arrive like always." Em teased Kelsey when they all fell into the couch as Pepper sat in the closed office near them to give them their space.

Kelsey moved to punch her, but thought better of it and instead stole the last slice of left over pizza.

"Marvin's on his way to see us so start thinking of what you want to do with your loft. Pick a theme so we can get started ASAP." Eve stated as she flipped the TV on.

"Is pizza a theme?" Em asked, still disappointed that the last slice was now in Kelsey's hands.

"No." Kat answered as she stood up and threw away the pizza box.

"Not fair. I'm already bored! What are we going to do with our time?" Em asked. "I mean, Kelsey, you still help S.H.I.E.L.D on various missions, right? Are you going to do that from here too?"

"Unless Clint or Nat need me, I'm officially retired." Kelsey answered and began to fiddle with her phone in boredom.

"Well I can continue inventing things so not much has changed for me. Location doesn't matter as long as I have a computer." Kat added, her eyes on the flashing channels, but her attention still on them.

"Eve…" Em whined and the girl in question stopped flipping channels and turned to look at her.

"Pepper's gonna leave me so I need to follow you around now. What do you even do?" Em whined.

"What do you mean? You lived with Kat and me for years at MIT. You know me." Eve answered in annoyance.

"You were always studying or doing genius stuff back then and I was usually playing games or finding cool places to hang out. We did our own things, what's your thing now?" Em pressed on, her whining increasing with every word it seemed and Eve sighed and shrugged.

"It depends. Some days I just go to the beach or the University. I usually tinker away on dad's gadgets, but that's not going to happen here. I guess I do need to find new hobbies." Eve answered with furrowed brows.

"Ew, didn't you already graduate? Why were you going to classes in LA?" Em asked in disgust at the prospect of returning to school.

"She likes to attend random classes when she's bored to see if any of them can teach her something new." Kelsey answered for her.

"That sounds like a horrible game. Why not just dig out your eyes?" Em shuddered and Eve turned the TV off in annoyance.

"Ladies, sorry to interrupt, but Marvin has just arrived. Shall I send him up?" Jarvis cut in politely.

"Sure, Jarvis." Eve answered and sent a glare at Em. "Just because you hate the concept of school, doesn't mean you have to insult my hobby."

"It's boring for me, I admit. But because I love you, I'll check out the universities around the area here for you. I'm willing to sacrifice my brain for you." Em said dramatically while walking around the couch and collapsing on the back of it behind Eve's head so she could awkwardly hug her head.

"You test my patience. Don't worry about it, I'll find something to fill up my time." Eve replied with a laugh just as the elevator doors opened and a handsome man with dark clothes and a crisp white jacket laid over him stepped towards them.

Eve stood up and stopped in front of him with a wide smile.

"Marvin! I haven't seen you in forever. How is Alicia?" She asked and he reached for her hand, bringing it up for a soft kiss.

"My wife is as fabulous as ever. You, my dear, look magnificent. How do you make your wardrobe seem so effortless?" He gushed and he reached forward to feel the soft material of her light purple sweater that settled just above the hem of her soft black jeans.

"It's no big deal. I just grab the first thing I see in the closet." She answered and he laughed as if she just made a joke.

"You're always pulling my chain!" He said and his short straightened black hair bounced with his laughter.

"I want to be complimented." Ember whined from behind Eve and Marvin sobered up and his eyes settled on the three girls behind Eve for a few minutes before he clapped his hands together abruptly.

"If it's a compliment that you desire, then a compliment you shall get." He announced and walked past them to set his bag on the table in front of the couch.

"I don't think he knows what that means…" Em whispered to Kat and shrugged her shoulders in confusion.

"Beautiful red, you're first!" He called out and Em's disappointment fluttered away as she ran over to look at the books.

"So what's his story?" Kelsey asked as she walked over to sit at on the bar stool in the corner of the room.

"He used to work for S.H.I.E.L.D. In fact, he was the one who decorated Steve's room for when he was first taken off ice. That little radio mistake that spazzed Steve out though got him fired and so he's been working for ex agents or people he deems eligible for his keen eye ever since. He checks out." Eve explained and poured a glass of whiskey for herself, ignoring the disapproving look Kels gave her.

"You are not drinking that." Kelsey demanded and Eve took a big gulp and smiled at her.

"It's not even 5, Eve. Don't you think you should wait a bit?" Kat asked softly as she opened up the fridge to grab a water bottle.

"It's never too early to drink. Start thinking about your themes while Marvin is with Em. We don't have all day." She answered, chugged the rest of her glass down, and walked to the elevator. "Jarvis, bring me to the lab. And let me know when Marvin is ready for my loft." She ordered and ignored the condescending look that Kelsey was aiming at her.

The four girls had only just gotten together and Eve was already feeling out of her comfort zone. Back in LA she had freedom to do whatever she wanted and if she poured a glass of whiskey at 9 in the morning, her dad would just be rooting her own as they challenged who could drink the most. She'd been taking care of herself for as long as she could remember with moderate adult supervision, if Tony could even be called that.

Em lived with her, but since she was always with Pepper, the house with moderately quiet as her father, Bruce, and her kept to themselves.

She groaned and rubbed her forehead in annoyance at the thought of sharing every minute with these girls. They were her best friends and a part of her family, but there was a reason they didn't get together frequently. Not only were their personality's polar opposites, but they were a very vocal bunch when they saw something that they didn't agree on.

Eve rolled her shoulders and took a deep breath, feeling the warmth of the alcohol and she figured that as long as she had her booze, she could care less what they thought of her habits.

"Director Coulson is calling. Shall I patch him through?" Jarvis asked as the elevator doors opened to her father's lab.

"Does he have this place bugged? Barely here for 24 hours." She muttered and hopped onto the swivel chair, quickly snatching the ear piece off of the table as she glided over the floor.

"Send him through." She called out and set her feet on the floor so the chair would stop moving.

"Hey Phil. What's crack a lackin?" She asked and could practically hear his eyes rolling.

"Evangeline. I need you to do some side work for S.H.I.E.L.D."

"Wow. I'm fine, thanks. And you?" She responded while clicking her nails against the counter as he sighed.

"I'm peachy. You know I wouldn't ask unless I needed this to be done. Your father would be the obvious choice to go to, but you and I both know that he would be expecting something in return."

"So you think I'll jump as soon as you ask? What makes me different?" She asked and started up the transparent computer screen.

"You care about people being saved and will trust that I'll tell you everything later. So will you be our hidden hacker?" He asked and Eve sighed at the prospect of having to work for the organization that almost destroyed the world. Well, SHIELD didn't exactly do that, HYDRA was the main culprit, but Eve still didn't trust that HYDRA was completely gone.

"Do I at least get to know what I'm hacking?" She asked with compliance.

"Not yet. I just sent the encrypted file to you. You're looking for something that shouldn't belong."

"That's not at all cryptic." She mumbled, opening up the file. "When's my deadline?"

"Soon." He answered and then hung up.

"Well, damn. Rude much? I need another drink." She complained to herself and stared at the pages of jumbled coding.

Back upstairs in HQ, Kelsey leaned her back against the bar, quietly observing Marvin as he nodded along to whatever crazy idea Ember was spewing to him. She had already gone through the activated floors and checked for any possible security breaches even though Eve had repeatedly told her that it was Tony proofed as soon as she arrived. It aggravated her that the girl didn't seem thankful for their presence, in fact it seemed to annoy her that they had dropped their lives just to give her support.

Kat was still looking around HQ with wide eyes. She couldn't believe that this place was now partly hers, at least for the time being. She watched Ember coo at the numerous pictures that Marvin held up with curious eyes. She didn't like the idea of Eve paying for each of their rooms to decorate from top to bottom and couldn't imagine the price this was going to cost. She offered to buy her own furniture, but Eve rejected it immediately. She told her to pick what she wanted and if Marvin didn't have something, then and only then could she go find it herself. Eve didn't want them having any trouble since they were living here for her. Kat wasn't really giving up much of a life in Massachusetts since her work was on her computer. She just hated the thought of someone doting on her and even though she knew the young Stark would never hold it over her, she felt like there was a hidden catch.


	6. Themes

_This chapter is all about the girls picking out cute themes. I'm just having fun. Turtles soon! This is so exciting and kind of makes up for the crummy rainy day I just had. College sucks. _

* * *

Two hours later, each of the girls had their meeting with Marvin.

Ember chose a bright theme with splashes of yellow, pink, and orange.

"There is no such thing as a pizza theme." Marvin argued yet again, trying to keep his composure when she suggested it for the 13th time.

"I want yellow furniture, a fuzzy pink carpet, and orange walls. Oh! And that table!" She decided as she pointed at the teardrop shaped kitchen table.

"You can't be serious." Ember watched as the man deadpanned in front of her and she grabbed another book to point at some instruments.

"I also want this banjo and that guitar to hang on the walls. Tony wouldn't let me go all out in LA so I'm not letting this opportunity pass me by!" She exclaimed, slamming her fist into her open palm with determination.

"Anything else?"

"I want a chandelier too. In the kitchen since that's the best room of all." She stated and got up to stretch. "This was fun. See you later Marvinator!" And with one cheery wave, she waltzed over to Kat and Kelsey.

"What did you do to him?" Kat asked hesitantly and Em glanced back at the frozen body of their decorator.

"Beats me. Kelsey, you want to go next? I think he needs a sane person after my brilliant ideas." Em said with a smile.

"Yeah, sure." Kelsey responded and took the spot that Ember was just sitting in.

"At least you know that you're insane. That's the first step to recovery." Kat said with a giggle and Em winked.

"Where did Eve go?" She asked, glancing around. "Is she in with Pep?"

"No, she poured a drink, downed it, and went to the lab." Kat answered with a regretful sigh.

"You two were judging her, weren't you?" Em scolded as she began twisting her red curls around her finger.

"Perhaps a little bit of judging occurred." Kat responded. She climbed up on a barstool and laid her head down onto the counter. "We're supposed to be making her feel better, not worse. Poor Harrison was just admitted yesterday and we're judging!" Kat groaned.

Ember leaned across the bar to pat her on the head. "She'll be fine. Give her some time and she'll be right back in here, drinking some whiskey while throwing around fun insults."

"Now, while we wait for your turn, let's figure out what I can make us for dinner." Em said with a spark in her eyes, thrilled at the idea of their next meal and Kat sat up with a nervous laugh.

Meanwhile, Kelsey was currently flipping through each book, speculating each page at the pros and cons for the furniture. Most of the items were superfluous or lacked a use, so once she finished looking, she set the books down between them and stared at Marvin who was sporting a hesitant smile.

"I don't want anyone in my loft, so you can set the items that I choose downstairs and I'll bring them up." She demanded and even though he scrunched his eyes at her words, he finally nodded.

"A simple full size bed will be fine. I'll take that mahogany dresser on page 24 along with the matching desk and table. The light blue loveseat on page 9 of the second book, the TV on page 2 in the electronics catalog, the dark brown kitchen table on page 16 in the fourth book, and these decorations." She listed off what she wanted with Marvin taking quick notes, afraid to ask her for any details regarding her choices. He finished jotting down her pages and then leaned forward to see the butterfly, birds, and symbols of nature decors that could go on the walls.

"Are you sure you don't want me to set these up for you?" He asked and gulped as she narrowed her eyes at him.

"I'm sure. Just leave the supplies that I'll need to put these up next to the pieces." She answered and left the couch to take her seat back at the bar.

"You're next, Kat."

"That was quick." Kat said, glad to escape Em's debate on whether to put feta or goat cheese on their chicken tonight.

"Don't worry about what you choose for your loft. Just get whatever you want. Ok?" Kelsey said with a reassuring hand on Kat's shoulder.

"Are you sure?" She asked timidly.

"Totally! I'm getting a chandelier!" Em interrupted with a proud smile.

"Ok then, I guess I won't hold back." Kat said slowly and walked over to Marvin.

"Is she always that scary?" Marvin whispered when she sat down next to him.

"She's a SHIELD agent, so when new people are involved, the answer would be yes." Kat answered and relief flooded the guy.

"That explains it. I didn't really work with anyone else when I was at SHIELD, so her stoic attitude threw me off. Alright, here are the books. Look through them and tell me whatever you want." Marvin said as his smile began to return and Kat slowly began flipping through the pages.

"Oh, that's lovely." She mentioned out loud, gazing at a soft white chandelier with crystals enveloping a rustic white light.

"That one is exquisite. Really captures the color of the room. What colors are you looking for?" Marvin asked while jotting down a few notes in his mystery pad.

"Oh, um, I guess purples and blues." She answered, and continued flipping. "I was just making remarking on that chandelier. They're too much." She said after realizing what she may have implied.

"Sure, sure." He muttered while writing down the pages that her eyes stopped on, the items she smiled at, and the pieces of furniture her fingers subconsciously caressed.

"I don't want much, just a simple theme." She finally said and pointed to a few boring items that Marvin glanced without interest.

"I know just what to do with your loft. Don't worry your pretty little head. I'll throw in a few bookcases for you too." He remarked and stood up to stretch. "Now where is the little Stark?" He asked just as the elevator opened to reveal her.

"Jarvis said you were ready." She said and used the back of the couch to hop over and sit next to Kat.

"What floor is the lab on? I'd like to set up my computer, if you don't mind." Kat asked and gave a thankful smile to Marvin before walking towards the elevator.

"32. You can either use the computers in there, or set up your own. Knock yourself out." Eve answered and snatched up one of the books as the doors closed and her friend went up.

"You have interesting friends." Marvin commented and flipped to a new page.

"I am well aware." Eve said distractedly, but looked up at him when she saw purple lights on the page she turned to. "Kat doesn't like to be spoiled so I assume she gave you boring options?" Eve asked, wondering how she was going to figure out what the girl really wanted, the gears in her head turning at possible ideas.

"Yes, I could tell. That's why I watched what pages she lingered on. I already have her perfect idea in place. I've been in this business a long time. Don't doubt my expertise." He boasted and she smirked at his attitude, relieved that she didn't have to trick her poor friend into revealing what she wanted.

"I have portraits for the walls already for the bedroom and you can leave the paint as is. For the main room, take out the sofa and put this light blue one in there instead. Update the flat screen, stereo system, and colored lights. Put this red rug on the floor and everything else can stay the same."

"Alright, I'll have each floor cleaned as well. Your floor will only take a day, but I'll need a few days to do the others. And I'll leave the spunky girl's order in the garage." He said while picking up the books and putting them in his leather Prada bag.

"Kelsey will want to inspect each piece, don't take offense." She explained while walking him to the elevator. "I want this done right."

"Give me 4 days." He confirmed with a cheeky smile.

"Thanks Marvin." She got out just as the doors closed and she turned to her friends at the bar. "Well, that was fun." She said sarcastically and Ember raced back to the couch.

"Let's watch a movie. This is going to be the best vacation from life, ever!" Em exclaimed as Eve and Kelsey sat next to her.

"You know I didn't mean to piss you off earlier." Kelsey brought up while Em found the movie channel.

"I know. You have your way of dealing with Hare's life choices and I have mine." Eve answered.

"You're way is awfully similar to what he's doing to himself though. You have the Stark addictive personality." Kelsey argued and Eve leaned back, putting her feet on the table so she could splay out.

"I'm aware. Don't worry so much. You'll get wrinkles." Eve said just as The Lion King began and the subject closed for now.


	7. Shopping Adventures

A week had passed since the girls moved in to the tower and Marvin had each of their lofts decked out to match their personalities, besides Kelsey's that is. She scrutinized all of the furniture and finally let Em and Kat help her lug it all upstairs. Eve had mysteriously disappeared while the heavy lifting was ensuing and appeared just as quickly when it was time to feng shui Kelsey's loft.

Pepper stocked their main kitchen as well as their personal ones, gave them Stark credit cards for emergencies, and left after that first week.

They were eternally thankful for own beds after sleeping in various spots through the tower. Kat had made a temporary bed in the lab, Ember slept on the couch in HQ, Kelsey on the couch in Eve's loft, and Eve in her own bed.

However, boredom was clawing at them by the second week, so Kelsey took up a new post at SHIELD in the city during the days, Kat continued working on her projects, and Ember accompanied Eve wherever the little Stark needed to go as her official bodyguard, which meant that she also went to the NYU classes that the hacker loved attending.

"Please don't make me go to another class. I don't want to learn about thermonuclear thingies ever again." Ember whined while they lounged in Eve's loft. Em was hanging half on the floor in an exaggerated pose from the sofa as Eve continued working on the file on her laptop.

"Does it really pain you that much?" Eve shut the computer down to see what her friend was doing.

"Why do you put yourself through this agony? I can get you help! You don't have to suffer anymore." Em let herself fall the rest of the way onto the floor while Eve sighed in annoyance.

"You don't have to go with me to every single one. Or don't go in with me. Just stand in the hallway if you must follow me." Eve suggested and Em sat up to face her, shaking her head.

"I am your official bodyguard when we are outside of this tower. I am going to take this job as seriously as Happy did." Determination lit up in her eyes.

"Happy didn't go into the classes with me though." Eve left out the part where he would survey every inch before each class to be sure it was safe and then run every person's name that entered.

"You're not exactly enrolled in the University so what's the point of going?" Em asked in defeat.

"They give me permission to attend their classes and I allow them the right to advertise my presence. It's a win-win that makes both of us happy." She explained and stood up to get her purse.

"Oh no! We just got back! Don't they shut down the school during the afternoon? Please. Don't make me get up." Em sprawled back onto the floor, gravity beckoning her closer.

"I guess I'll have to go shopping all by myself. I thought that I'd reward you for being so loyal, but here I go…Jarvis, send the elevator." Eve slowly strutted backwards.

"I suppose I can go outside again." Em hurdled over the sofa and gave Eve a sympathetic smile. "If it's really what you want, who am I to say no." She finished and grabbed Eve's wrist and ran into the opening elevator.

"I should have suggested you drive a moving truck." Eve groaned as they tucked another couple bags into the trunk of the already overfilled vehicle. "Did we really have to bring the limo to go shopping?" She called out as Ember skipped towards her and put her new purchases in before shoving it closed.

"I like the looks we get, like we're famous." She confessed and jumped into the driver's seat. "Plus, we have more room for bags since you're sitting up here with me! Where to next?" She asked excitedy.

"We are famous. Well, I am. You are by association. Don't you see them snapping pics on their phones? I can already see the boring headlines. 'Stark daughter on an adventurous shopping spree.'" Em exaggerated with her hands and a roll of her eyes. "No more clothes, please. You just made me buy a whole new closet and you have enough clothes now to wear something different every day of the year." Eve complained, shrinking down in her seat in exhaustion.

"Fine fine. No more clothes. What about make-up?" She asked hopefully and frowned when Eve shook her head. "Ok, no more of that either. Fine. How about boys?" She asked whimsically.

"No."

"You're no fun. How about we find some of those thrift stores you like and in trade we can visit the club tomorrow night?" Em pressed and it may have been because they had been shopping for 7 straight hours or from her weak will, but Eve agreed in hopes that this day would end soon. She wanted to go find a couple new outfits, but did not expect the onslaught of clothes that Em had forced her to try on and then because they apparently looked cute, she had to buy them all too. They had everything from scarfs, make up, purses, shoes, casual wear, and dresses.

Browsing some books sounded like heaven right now.

"It's like the city knows what we want." Em said cryptically and when Eve looked out the window, she realized what the girl meant. They were on a street of bookstores and thrift shops.

"It's getting late; I hope they aren't closing soon." Eve said as she stepped out and glanced at the neighborhood. "And this is the worst neighborhood to bring a limo, Em. Maybe we should come back when the sun is out." She added, worried for their safety now. Some of the stores looked ready to close for good with their broken windows and wooden slats. The alleys even seemed darker now and Eve moved to open her door when Em dragged her away from the car.

"Don't worry, I got you. The car is locked and armed, thanks to Happy's criteria and your father's tinkering. And I'm not called a bodyguard for nothing." Em dragged her towards the closest thrift store.

"Ok, you were right. This is nice." Eve confessed as they wandered in to the homey abode.

"I'm always right." Ember responded as she held Eve's bag of bought books and stuck her tongue out playfully.

The store held home to dozens of imaginable artifacts, and the girls would never have guessed how far an imagination could spread for what they were about to encounter.

* * *

_Guess what store they're in? You're guess is as good as mine. :p Just kidding. You'll see the turtles in the next chapter. Have fun! And wish me luck on my job interview tomorrow morning!_


	8. Meeting April

_Thanks for reading my little story. Writing is definitely helping with my procrastination. ;)_

* * *

"Welcome to the 2nd Time Around Antique Store!" A young woman called out from the back and jogged through a little hall to wave at them. Her beautiful red hair was hastily brushed behind her ear and she seemed nervous at having customers, but Eve and Ember smiled and continued browsing.

"Oh! This is a nice bookcase! I bet Katerina would love it!" Em yelled out from the side as Eve knelt down to inspect the bottom of a lamp.

"Then we should get it for her. She can never have enough of those." Eve hollered back.

"Nice turtle. Oh! We can get the turtle and this butterfly figurine for Kelsey!" Em exclaimed and Eve left the pretty lamp to go see the gifts her friend was picking out. The shop owner seemed a bit suspicious when she darted her head to look at the hallway a couple of times when Em yelled, but Eve ignored it to study the bookcase and figurines.

"I think they'll be perfect." She responded and Em rocked on her heels with a wide smile.

"Do you want me to ring you two up?" The shop owner asked from behind them and Em wandered off again.

"I think she wants to keep looking." Eve answered with an apologetic smile.

"Oh! Customers don't usually buy more than one thing when they come in, sorry! I didn't mean to rush you two. Keep looking, by all means!" The shop owner apologized and put her hands in her jean pockets, rocking back on her heals.

"Well, today is a shopping day so Ember has free reign. We've been at it all day." Eve explained and raised her voice a bit, "But Ember knows that this won't be a common occurrence."

"That's what you think! But if we keep going to those dumb university classes, then you better get used to shopping my way!" Em yelled back and Eve glared at her back.

"Thermonuclear physics is an important subject!" Eve argued while feeling an old pink couch as she took a few steps towards the center.

"Only if you're a nerd." Em sang back and Eve fought the urge to throw the nearest object at her friend.

"I'm sorry about my friend over there. She's a bit of a," Eve said and paused as she searched for the right word, "handful. That's an understatement though."

The shop owner laughed just as Em jogged back over to flip her off.

"That's not very nice." Eve scolded and Em rolled her eyes as she bounced off to another corner of the room.

"Says the Stark. Ok, sure." Em yelled back and the shop owner's eyes widened.

"You're a Stark?" She asked and Eve nodded, waiting for one of the popular reactions. People usually hated her or wanted to praise the ground she walked on, so she eyed the shop keeper carefully.

"Oh my! You're Evangelina Stark! In my shop! I'm a journalist and I'm constantly trying to persuade my readers that you're not bad. You're family has been through enough that you don't need the public interfering too. I'm April O'neil." She said cheerfully and held out her hand for Eve to shake.

"Nice to meet you. The basket case rifling through your magazines is Ember." Eve said with a laugh just as Em sauntered back to them.

"I resent that." Em responded and put her arm on Eve's shoulder to lean against.

"Thanks for not freaking out on us. We were afraid that you were going to try to axe us." Em thanked with a wide grin and April's mouth dropped.

"Axe you? I would never." She responded in shock.

"You'd be surprised. That's why I have to follow this little ball of anger around." Em said as Eve brushed her off and walked over to look at some other lamps.

"I'm not a ball of anger." She muttered and ignored Em's laugh.

"What was that? If you weren't then you wouldn't argue, so you're really just proving my point. But yeah, I'm her bodyguard." Em bragged and struck a dramatic pose.

"You're fired." Eve called out from next to the hallway as she passed a beautiful rosewood cabinet and swore she heard whispers coming from the shadows.

"You can't fire me! I'm your sister!" Em argued with mock hurt in her tone.

"Disowned." Eve retaliated and leaned against the wall with a smirk as Em pretended to faint.

"Not allowed to do that either. Then who would protect you from the evil doers in this city!" Em said and plunked onto a flowered love seat as April giggled at their spectacle.

"I didn't have a bodyguard before you." Eve stated plainly, inspecting her nails for indifference and smiled as Em scoffed.

"And you were almost kidnapped three times!" Em exclaimed.

"'Almost' being the operative word." Eve answered and pushed off the wall to walk towards Em who was giving her a look of disbelief. "What?"

"Normal people don't almost get kidnapped at all." Em argued.

"She has a point. That's not a normal thing." April chimed in and Eve threw a glare her way too and sighed.

"I give up. You can be my bodyguard until I come up with a better reason." Eve said and sat down on the cushion next to Em who was shimmying in her spot at her win.

"Do you two want some tea or coffee? She seems tired." April offered as Eve further proved her statement by laying back and closing her eyes.

"You must be my fairy godmother." Eve answered with a smile.

"I can help!" Em exclaimed while jumping up and April raised an eyebrow at her.

"You sure do have a lot of energy, don't you? Should you even be having coffee?" April asked and gestured for her to follow.

"Oh coffee doesn't affect me at all. In fact, it does the opposite effect and calms me." She explained and April laughed at the irony of it as they walked through the hall and up the stairs to her apartment.

"Wow, this place is amazing. You live above your shop!" Em remarked as she gazed around, missing April's suspicious gaze around the room as if she were checking for something.

"Yup. It's my little homey abode." April answered while pouring the coffee into the filter, adding the water, and turning the machine on.

"I bet Eve fell asleep downstairs. Do you have a bowl I can fill with water?" Em whispered and April frowned as she grabbed some coffee cups.

"You want to prank your sister?" She asked in dismay and almost cursed at the sound of a chuckle coming from behind the couch.

"Just a little teeny one, really."

"I don't think I want to be an accomplice to pranking THE Evangeline Stark." April said with disbelief.

Em sighed in defeat and after thinking for a moment she smiled. "You don't have to call me Ember. Call me Em. All my friends do. Oh and my sister prefers Eve." She said and April smiled back at her.

"So we're friends?" She asked and Em nodded her head excitedly.

"We're kind of new in town so new friends are hard to come by when you're hiding at Stark tower. I mean, Eve drags me to NYU, but she doesn't allow me to socialize. You should come over sometime and I'll order a buttload of pizza. It can be a party!" Em began rambling, making a list of everything they could do. "Movies and pizza. Or if you don't like pizza, I can make something else. And we can play games. Board or video games!" She would have kept going on, but April's loud laughter made her stop.

"Wow. I can see why Eve tries to keep you away from people. You seemed two seconds away from unleashing your identity on me." April laughed again, but stopped at something behind Em and before April could shoo away the person behind her, Em turned around.

* * *

_Oh gosh golly, wonder who's behind her? I'll just tell you and spoil it. It's a turtle. :p I mean, this is a TMNT story so I have to include them at some point...Next chapter will be up soon since I already have another 7 written. I know of an author that sends previews of the next chapter to people who review so since I'm bored and procrastinating, I'll do that too. If you want a preview of the next chapter, like a few paragraphs, or cute dialogue, just review. _

_Thanks for reading! Space is chill! :)_


	9. Meeting the Turtles

_Sorry about that cliffhanger. It wasn't intentional. :) To make up for it, I wrote double the amount that I usually submit. Here you go!_

* * *

A scream tore through the shop.

Eve's little nap was rudely interrupted and she flew off the couch in reaction and once the fact that it was Em's voice hollering, she raced upstairs. Once she reached the spectacle causing the horrifying response, any fight or flight instinct vanished.

Ember continued screaming at the top of her lungs as a giant turtle waved his arms frantically while three others were climbing down from various hiding spots around the room.

Eve was still disoriented and was honestly wondering if she was still downstairs napping on the stranger's couch, but the deafening noise coming from her sister signaled that this may in fact be real.

The uproar was too much as the other giant turtles were yelling actual words at the one half dancing frantically, Em somehow continued her murder on everyone's ears, and April was shouting for the turtle things to leave.

"This is getting nowhere! Where's Thor and his booming voice when you need him?" Eve knew she was saying the words, but she couldn't even hear herself talk, let alone think.

She needed to think and right now Em's mouth was her main concern. The giant turtle things seemed semi harmless at the moment, holding their hands over their ears, so she sprinted over to Em, placing her hand over the girl's mouth in hopes that she could close it herself.

"Em! Shut up!" Eve yelled and her presence must have registered and the awful scream finally trailed off.

"Giant turtles." Em muttered and then fainted. Eve was having a hard time keeping her cool as she tried to ease Em's body to the floor slowly and swatted April's hand away when she tried to help.

"What the hell is this?" She could feel a growing headache pulsating and she wasn't quite sure if she should be thanking the girl or running for her life.

"I am so sorry! I didn't know Mikey would come out of hiding when she started talking about pizza. They won't hurt you! They're harmless, really!" April apologized profusely, grabbing a towel off the counter, wetting it down, and placing it on Em's forehead.

If they were truly harmless, well Eve being Eve was about to test the theory as she stood and glared at the giant turtles.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" She yelled and they all looked at each other in confusion. Their appearances resembled turtles, that was for sure, but they were also very human-like. She took their stunned silence as an opportunity to scrutinize them.

Two legs, two arms, two eyes. Ok, so that part of them was quite human besides the whole being green thing but she didn't judge them on that, used to the Hulk's odd color. They even had toned muscles so she assumed they worked out, although what gym did they get into? She shook the thought away and continued observing their almost normal features. It seemed that the only big contrast they exhibited was having a shell on their backs, 3 fingers, 2 toes, no hair, and where were their ears? They did have weapons though, so she kept her distance in hopes that Em's new friend, April, was correct when she told her they were harmless.

With an unconscious body guard/vulnerable sister, Eve kept her ground the best she could and tried to put a funnel on her rising irritation.

"What the shell?" One of them asked and Eve clenched her fist.

"You made her faint! This is on you!" She accused and pointed at the one with the orange mask around his eyes, the one who was directly in front of Em when Eve ran in. He stepped back in surprise at the rage boiling in her eyes and put his hands up in surrender.

"Me? But, Dudette! She was the one who screamed!" He argued, but released a little squeak when she hesitantly took one step towards him. Her previous fear went out like a flame at his squeak and her attitude took control.

"You scared her, so of course she was going to scream!" Eve yelled back and he stepped back from her.

"I couldn't help it, dudette! I'm sorry, it's just that she mentioned pizza. My bad." He meekly said in a surfer accent and Eve sighed, resting her hand on her forehead.

"Giant turtles are in front of me. A surfer turtle no less." She commented to herself with a chuckle and then lowered her hand so she could ask, "Where are your ears?"

"What?" Orangie furrowed his brow, or the eye ridge that was there. She was confused and honestly kind of annoyed that she had no preparation whatsoever for this. She didn't mind that they were mutant turtles, but she hated surprises.

"Ears, you've got to have them since you hear me. Where are they?" She repeated, tilting her head to see if she may be missing them. "I don't usually research turtle anatomy so you've got one up on me this time. It won't happen again."

"You're handling this rather well." Blue mask spoke, but she swatted the comment away, hoping she wouldn't have to repeat herself yet again.

"We have them, they're internal though unlike humans." Purple mask finally answered and she gave him an appreciative nod.

"Interesting. So, since this is the first time I've heard of mutant turtle people, I'm guessing you've got a secret lair." She mentioned idly, sauntering past them towards the window.

"How do you know what we call it?" The calm voice asked and she turned to see which turtle asked. Blue.

"You really call it a lair?" She chuckled and leaned against the wall with her arms crossed and wondered how Bruce would react to the possibility of learning more about mutants and DNA.

"You seem to be taking this rather well." Purple brought up timidly and she shrugged.

"Definitely threw me off, so I'll give you points for that. Now, am I going to keep you colors or are you going to give me names?"

Blue stepped up first and from the way he held himself, she guessed he considered himself the leader. He took the first step and watched her every move, like Steve when he was met new people.

"I'm Leonardo." He began and Orange leaned past him to whisper, "We call him Leo though!"

Leonardo pushed him back with annoyance and she appreciated how human they truly acted as he continued. "The annoying one is Michelangelo or Mikey." He added the nickname when Mikey tried to lean over his shoulder again.

"I'm Donatello, but you can call me Donnie or Don and that's Raphael, otherwise known as Raph." The purple one spoke up excitedly and she stuck here hands in her pockets as she rocked on her heels.

"I'm Evangelina Stark, but everyone calls me Eve and my sister is the one with the lungs, Ember, but she insists everyone call her Em. So whoever named you guys really liked art." She smiled and Mikey laughed.

"Master Splinter, our dad, really does, dudette." Mikey answered with a wide grin and she was beginning to feel rather relieved that she didn't try to run from these dorks. "You're the best reaction we've ever had, dudette. You didn't faint or scream like everyone else, even your sis!" He praised and she smirked.

"You don't seem that bad in comparison to the Hulk." She replied dryly and Mikey's eyes widened. How was that possible, he was wearing a mask, but the white part over his eyes definitely became larger, Eve observed in wonder.

"You know the Hulk? He was so cool when he was here, smashing and throwing those aliens like it was nothing! I have all the Avenger's action figures and posters! They are soo cool! Wait!" Mikey stopped his excited movements and jumped in front of her. "You're last name is Stark. Like THE Stark?" He asked in wonder and she nodded.

"You guys! She's The Stark!" He turned to the others and it was quite obvious that Mikey was the only hero nerd.

"What do ya mean, Mikey?" Raphael asked and Eve blinked in surprise at the thick Brooklyn accent that just came from him.

"She's Iron Man's daughter! Hero by association! That is so cool! Can you sign my Iron Man poster?" Mikey hopped on his feet and she glanced at her sister to be sure the girl was still doing alright.

"Yeah, sure. I'm sure I can weasel my dad into signing it too." She answered and suddenly felt his arms around her in a hug. It was short, but she noticed that his skin was cooler than the average human and wondered exactly where the cutoff point was in their mutant characteristics.

"You are my new hero, aside from Iron Man, of course." He gushed after he released her and she lifted his hand to see his fingers. Since they were on a hugging basis, she could do this without it being weird, right? He didn't object and instead started regaling the others with stories about her dad.

"Mikey, shut up already! We know the stories; we all watched the same broadcast when it happened." Raphael interrupted.

"So do you all have the same dad? Is he a turtle too? You're all brothers?" She was curious and released Mikey's hand since he began to fidget.

"Yeah, we're brothers, but no our dad isn't exactly a turtle." Leo answered with a grimace and then rubbed the back of his head. "We need to tell him about this and see what he wants us to do."

"See if he'll want you to hide our bodies or kidnap us. Got it." Eve crossed her arms over her chest, joking but honestly hoping this wasn't about to be her reality.

"No, dudette! He'll totally want to meet you! We'd never kill or kidnap you! You're too cool! I was actually wondering," Mikey seemed to be giving her a pleading expression and if turtles could do puppy dog expressions, this would it, "Can we keep you?" He finished and she chuckled, reaching up to pat his head.

"Afraid not, but if you promise not to bite, we may take you up on that offer to meet your dad and see how badass your lair is." Eve responded with ease, fascinated by these guys. "How old are you?" She wondered aloud.

"We're all 24." Donnie friendly voiced and she tapped her finger on her chin.

"You guys are older. How was puberty for you?" She wondered.

"We used to call ourselves the teenage mutant ninja turtles. I guess we're totally the adult versions of that now though." Mikey grinned proudly and Eve padded back across the living room to check on her poor unconscious sister. "How old are you dudette?" She heard Mikey following as she crouched down to lightly touch Em's cheek.

"I'm 21. Em's 20 though." After answering though, she felt Em stir under her touch.

Everything was hazy for the young girl, but she forced her eyes open when she heard her sister's calm voice and wondered if the humongous turtles had been some crazy dream.

"Em? How ya feelin?" Eve was hesitant with allowing Em to sit up, worried about the second reaction.

"Eve." Em whispered in a panicked voice.

"Yeah." Eve kept her voice low too with a humorous smile.

"There are turtle mutant people behind you." She gulped nervously and reached for Eve's hand. "How do we escape?" Em's fearful eyes shifted into shock when Eve released a loud laugh. "Why are you laughing?" She partly shrieked, darting her eyes back and forth between her sister and the turtles.

"Their pretty cool, no need to freak out." Eve helped her stand, keeping a hand on the young girl's back as reassurance. "Blue is Leo, Purple is Donnie, Red is Raph, and Orange is Mikey."

Mikey hesitantly stepped forward, afraid to spook the poor girl. "I'm sorry about scaring ya, dudette. You kept talking about pizza and that's my life. My bad."

"Pizza." She repeated dryly and when the work wormed its way through her hazy thoughts, she smiled. "That. Is. Awesome!" She exclaimed.

"I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship."

* * *

_I know some of you want me to start adding in the Avengers, so ask and you shall receive. Since I'm rewriting what I already had in order to include our Avengers into it, it may take a few more days. Have a good week!_


	10. Eve and Em

_Hi! i haven't posted in a whole year! Oh my gosh! I am so sorry. Life got really hectic and I just found the story in my computer while browsing all my files. So I figured I would post more of what I had..._

_:)_

After the initial shock wore off between the human girls and the mutant turtles, they went their separate ways with exchanged phone numbers and a promise to meet up again in a couple of days after the guys discussed their new adventure over with their father.

It hadn't even been a full 24 hours since they met the turtles, yet Eve and Ember were arguing yet again on whether to tell anyone about the ordeal.

"We told them we would keep it a secret!" Em shouted across Eve's loft as the girl continued to ignore her as she typed away at her computer.

"We never promised them. We just said they wouldn't have to worry with us knowing their identities." Eve glanced over her computer screen for a moment and when she brought her eyes back to the file in front of her, she figured the conversation ended, but Ember slammed her mug down on the counter, ignoring how it sloshed onto the counter as she stood above her sister, arms planted on her hips.

"You're not telling anyone." The determination in Ember's voice would have startled anyone into backing down, however this only added fuel to their discussion.

Eve had to remind herself that the owner of that sentence was her sister, but the words kept bouncing off her inner mind and ignited her temper. She closed her laptop, agonizingly slow so as to regain control and held it close to her as a reminder to not lose her head. She couldn't risk damaging the file she had been meticulously working on the past week for Coulson and if it was held firmly against her chest, she wouldn't make any rash movements.

"If I believe that it is in our best interest to release this information, then that is my decision. Not yours." Eve's steady eyes never wavered from Em's face.

Time seemed irrelevant as they continued their face off, until Ember finally glanced down in surrender.

"I just don't see why we have to make it a big deal." Em plopped on the couch with a sigh and Eve set her computer off to the side to sit next to her.

"We don't know anything about them and if they are truly safe, then we'll only be providing them further protection. We'll start small, alright?" Eve hesitantly patted Em's knee in comfort, all signs of their previous argument gone.

"Small? As in just telling Kat and Kelsey?" Em asked.

"To begin with, yes. Plus it would be pretty difficult to sneak off to go meet up with the turtles living with a SHIELD agent." Eve smirked and stretched at the annoying thought of having to explain the existence of turtle men.

"Who else are you telling, Eve? We need to let them know what we're doing. These are their lives." Ember pushed and Eve began to regret letting them stay at the store for hours last night. Eve had ended up sitting off to the side with April, Raphael, and Donatello as Ember and Michelangelo talked about all the things they loved. The others couldn't comprehend how two beings could go on for an hour just on pizza and even though Eve was able to bond with Donnie over technology, everyone except the pizza lovers seemed out of their element. Ember seemed to be best friends with the orange masked turtle and hadn't left Eve's side all night as they talked over how this changed things. They were both exhausted, but Eve knew that she needed to take action now in order to keep control over this situation.

Like Steve always said, 'Know what you're getting into so you can plan for success.'

"The Avengers; our friends and family. Not only do they need to know since this is their job description, dealing with extraterrestrial beings and superhumans, but it is necessary for us to inform them for the safety of those we care for. We don't know if the turtles have a secret agenda or plan to harm us." Eve paused and motioned at Em to remain quiet when she opened her mouth. "And if they are truly good guys, then they can be protected this way. We're not broadcasting it; we're just telling a selective few who need to know and Coulson since he's the director of Shield."

"That's 9 people including Kat and Kelsey! Shouldn't we at least ask the guys how they feel about this?" Em exclaimed as Eve shook her head in annoyance.

"Why don't we just stick with telling our roomies first and then we can move from there. Don't worry so much, you'll get wrinkles." Eve patted Em's knee before retiring to her bedroom. "Now, I'm going to go get a shower and we'll tell them at dinner in 3 hours. Maybe I can get a nap in too." She yawned and left her sister in the living room to do as she pleased. Eve was exhausted and still processing the previous night's events in her head, but she was trying to make the right decision unbiasedly for the good of everyone. Sure she liked the guys and could definitely see them all being friends, but for now she needed to do her part as a Stark and assess all possible reactions this could cause….after her shower and nap.


	11. Hacking

_Shall I continue with this story or just let it float away into an abyss and forget it?_

_-Jack-chann88_

Two days had passed since their encounter with the mutant turtles and Eve would have thought it was a simple twist of imagination she had dreamt if it weren't for Ember sticking by her side more than usual and constantly asking if they had called.

"No." Eve answered yet again as she continued her encryption of Coulson's file. Her fingers glided over the keyboard as her eyes scoured the code, searching for Waldo in a sea of puzzles.

"How do you know? You haven't checked your phone since I asked last." Em whined and Eve glanced at the doorway when Kat walked back in with a granola bar.

"Have a nice lunch with Kelsey?" Eve called out and Kat smiled, tucking the granola bar at her station across the room.

"We went to this cute little Italian place and the food was delicious. What did you 2 do?" She asked, sitting down in her swivel chair.

"She won't get lunch with me." Em complained while twirling her seat around in circles in boredom.

"Eve, you need to eat. What are you even working on so diligently?" Kat asked, coming back over to peer over her shoulder, but Eve closed the file down and pulled away from her computer.

"You're right. I don't remember the last time I ate. Let's go. I'm starving." She said quickly and waked out.

"I know as much as you do." Em apologized and ran into the elevator to join Eve.

"So why won't you check your phone?" She asked when the doors closed and Eve sighed.

"Em, if they call, Jarvis will let me know that an unknown caller is trying to reach me. I gave him explicit instructions to let all unknown calls go through to me for now. Jarvis, bring me to my loft." She explained and called out to her A.I.

"You're going to eat, right?" Em asked in a motherly tone.

"Yes, Em. I have left over Chinese from yesterday that I'll heat up. I'm not going to starve myself." She answered in annoyance and rubbed her forehead.

"Are you having frequent headaches? Maybe you should get that checked out. If you won't go to a doctor, I'm sure Bruce will come if you call." Em pestered in a worried tone.

"I'm fine. Just tired." Eve dismissed and walked out of the elevator as soon as the doors opened.

"Maybe we should go visit April's shop." Em suggested and moved to step out of the lift too.

"Ember. Please. I'm going to eat some lunch and then take a nap. I need to be alone." Eve stated and Em's hurt expression made guilt run through her, but she let the girl retreat back into the elevator. "I'll have Jarvis ring you if they call." Eve said softly just before the doors closed and she rubbed her forehead again.

"Damnit, I'm sick and tired of this headache." She muttered and plopped down on her couch.

"Shall I run your vitals to diagnose your problem?" Jarvis's light British voice echoed through her room and she sighed yet again.

"No, Jar. I'm fine. Pull up the file for me though." She requested and the encryption codes came on her hologram in the center of the room.

"Alright. Something that doesn't belong. What the hell am I looking for Phil? I've ran through it dozens of times. There's no pattern. No repetition. It's all random! None of it belongs!" She pondered aloud, moving the pages around so she was staring at the whole thing.

It was full of numbers and letters, hieroglyphics and symbols. How was she supposed to hack it and find the hidden clue if she didn't know what she was even looking for. She hadn't been worried last week when trekking through it, but Phil needed it now and her lack of sleep wasn't going to help.

She had looked at it from every angle she could imagine, just the symbols, vowels, location with latitudes and longitudes, possible formulas, elements, and any other idea that they could represent.

"Jarvis, start another pot of coffee." She ordered.

"I don't recommend consuming any more of the caffeinated-," He started, but was cut off.

"Jar, not now. People's lives are at risk and the longer this takes, the higher the death toll. Just do it." She said and swore she heard the computer sigh at her.

"You learned that sighing thing from dad. Didn't you?" She muttered, but silence answered her.

"Alright, Jarvis. We're looking for something that doesn't belong, but if none of it belongs, maybe that's our clue. Get rid of all symbols." She ordered and they disappeared with a wave of her hand.

"Now all the numbers. Throw them out."

"Let's see, with just these letters, there may be a pattern now. Alright, Jarvis. It looks like it's the alphabet repeated, but it stops at random letters each time before it starts again. Now that's a pattern!" She said, getting excited and pouring a cup of coffee before moving back to the holographic screen.

"Remove all the repetitions except for the letter they each stop at." She said and gulped down part of the cup.

"We're left with 9 letters. 'Y', 'T', 'A', 'O', 'R', 'O', 'D', 'F', and 'H.' What does that mean? Is it code for something? Maybe each letter stands for something. This is nothing to go on! I'm back at square 1!" She yelled and slammed the cup down on the counter.

For hours, she just stared at the strange letters, barely noticing the light diminishing from the windows as night was upon her again. With each passing hour, she was letting Phil down and that thought was eating away at her.

"Miss Ember is wishing to come to your floor. Do you allow her permission or shall I notify her that you are sleeping?" Jarvis asked and Eve glanced at the clock. How did 10 hours already pass since she said goodbye to Em?

"Tell her I'm asleep, Jar." She said with a yawn and pulled up another page of possible words that he letters could represent.

"Might I suggest asking Master Stark for assistance? He has deciphered many puzzles such as this." Jarvis finally advised, and even his patience seemed to waver with her problem, but Eve snapped her head back up to look at the letters at his question.

"You're right, Jar. You're brilliant! It is a puzzle, but I was deciphering it all wrong. Maybe the letters don't stand for different words! Whoever encrypted this file wasn't as much of a genius as I thought. They are smart, but I gave them too much credit. It's an anagram! Jarvis, pull up all possible anagrams from these letters." She shouted and jumped off of the edge of the bar that she had been sitting on and she ignored the sharp pains darting through her legs for sitting so long.

"96 possible anagrams for these 9 letters." His British voice called into room and she enlarged the screen so all possibilities were in front of her.

"Frothy ado, forty hado, tardy hoof, troy oh fad, thy Frodo a, fry ho toad, dry hot oaf, ray doth of, toy had for. What is with these? None of these make any sense." She chuckled at the strange arrangements, but the laugh died in her throat when she scrolled further down.

"No. Hydra. It's Hydra." She shakily whispered and put her hand on the counter to steady herself. If Hydra was back, she was the only one who knew right now. Who else would go to the trouble of encrypting a file through SHIELD?

Eve gasped at the thought. If HYDRA was sending files through SHIELD, that meant they were back inside. They were never really gone.


End file.
